Bathtub seat



Nov. 19, 1957v R. L. LANZA 2,313,276

- BATHTUBSEAT Filed oct. lo, 1955- i l 2 sheets-sheet 1 .T5-Eil..

R. L. LANZA BATHTUB SEAT Filed OGL 10, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 3a 25 i l ,'/M/f/VTOR @gc/ Mao L. LANZA 5y A MW #l Traa/V575 United .States Patent YOffice 2,813,276 Patented lNov.. 19, 1957 BATHTUB SEAT Richard L. Lanza, Hayward, Calif..

Application October 10,1955, Serial"N.o. 539,409.

.-4 Claims. (Cl. 4-'1l85) AThis invention generally relates to` batbtu'bs, .and is more ,specifically directed towards ,a `seat adapted .to beplaced ,inoperative position in or on `the bathtub.` t i In many 'instances,'it isdesirable for a `persQnlto sit with the major portion of his body overlyingga bathtub such as for `soakingones feet, washing hair ofthe-like."

Heretofore, such an arrangement was impossiblev aslit was necessary foreny `person not desiring to lbecom- Kpletely disposed within the bathtub to .Sit on asdethereof y which is uncomfortable, causes water to drip onto 'the .surrounding oor area, and likewise presents .the gpojs' sib'i'lity of injury.

Accordingly, it is an object of ,the present invention to provide a seat which is adapted to be operatively positioned transverselyof a bathtub and at an elevation substantiallyvr at theilevel of the upperrmsurace of the tub. f A

Another object of the invention is 'to provide a seat of the character described which may bereadily placed into opera-tiveposition and which -likewisemaybemoved .to ,an inoperative lposition wherein there l:is no interference with the .normal use Aof the tub. ,l

A further object vof Vthe invention is to provide apparatus of the character described which maybe incorporated ron .existing `bathtub constructions -or' alternatively may be used with slight "modifications on nevil tub` and nonfinterfering position, and `in ,accordance with the teachings of the vpresent invention the `seatmay be readily movedand `-rnaintained .in` either its operative or inopery.ative position.

With particular reference to Figure l of the drawings, a bathtub generally indicated by the numeral 6 ,disclosed; The tub, Aas in conventional construction, vhas a pair of longitudinally extending side walls 8 one of .such .walls being substantially `iiush with a wall 7 .of V.tlle bathroom andthe outermost wall 8 `exposed `to ,the room. Also, end walls 9`areqprovided which likewise .are .genorally ,ush Withone-or both of bathroom wallportions. The end .and side walls 8 and `9 al1 are `provided with a .substantially coplanar rim 12 extending completely around the tub `and Within the rim .is the bowl 13 which is `of a .size .sufficient to receive the bod-y of the bather. The bowl 1-3 is defined by a continuous vertical surface 14 which is .disposed in generally parallelrelationship 4to thefside and ,end walls `or outer surfaces of :the tub.

The .forging type of construction is. generally vconventionalrin the .art and. no further detailed consideration is believed necessary .for an understanding of .the .present invention. In accordance with .the teachings of .this

" invention, I provide in the room wall 7 a .generally 'rectangular recess `21 which may .be defined by a suitable framework 22 of .chrome or .similar material.

Recess 21 Aextends vertically upward from a poi-nt substantially medially of the .end walls 9 of .the tub .andfor fa .couventional `tub size may be approxi-mately .inches` wide by about `inches high and a :little over l ,inch in depth.

`RecessjZl isadapted to receive the 4seat of the present invention as '.shownin solid lines in Figure `E5 of the .drawing when tlielatter is in its inoperative or foldedY position.

Asbest seen in Figures 2 and 3, the seat, ,generally indicated .by` `the numeral `26, is of generally `rectangular andplank-.lilcc conguration and may be .suitably padded Figure l is a perspective view of a bathtub showing the seat of the present invention in operative position thereon.

Figure 2 is an elevational view of the seat in its inoperative position.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially in the plane indicated by line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 but showing a modified form of construction for use on existing bathtub construction.

As hereinabove mentioned, the present invention relates to a seat which is adapted to be supported on the longitudinally extending opposed upper rim surfaces of a bathtub and substantially medially of the bathtub length whereby a person may sit on such seat in relative cornfort and safety while soaking his feet, or may use the seat in conjunction with a shower, such as for shampooing his hair and the like, or for any other desired reason. Obviously, when the bathtub is to be used in a more conventional manner, it is necessary that the seat be removed with a minimum of diiculty to an inoperative or .quilted with .a waterproof material (not shown) .to provide more comfort to a person using :the same. Adja- Y ,centeno .end of :the seat I provide .a suitable ,hinge 27 whichl may `include a pair ,of apertured .members 28 bolted or otherwise secured to the wall or a stu'd therein and a. pivot pin or bolt 29 extending therebetween. Carried on the distal ends of the pin are a pair of plates 31 which are suitably screwed or bolted to the lower surface 32 of the seat 26. In this manner, the seat may bernoved from the solid line position shown in Figure 3 to the broken line position shown in the same figure so as to move from its inoperative position within recess 21 to its operative position traversing the bathtub and adapted to rest on or adjacent the rim 12 thereof. In new construction, I prefer to provide notches or recesses 36 and 37 at opposed portions of the rim 12 so that when the seat is in its horizontal operative position it will be disposed within said recesses and have the upper surface 38 thereof substantially coplanar with the upper surface of the rim 12. However, for existing constructions, such as is shown in Figure 4, it would be difficult if not impossible to provide such notches or recesses, and therefore in the latter instances, the seat will merely rest on the upper surface of the rim 12. Suitable rubber bumpers 41 are provided on the lower surface of the seat at the points of engagement of the seat with any portion of the bathtub in order to protect the latter against chipping or cracking when engaged by the seat.

If theseat were merely freely pivoted as indicated at 27, there would be no diiiiculty in having the same maintain itself in its horizontal operative position but would be diicult to hold the seat in its inoperative folded position within the recess 21. Accordingly, means must be provided to insure retention of the seat in its vertical inoperative position. Although numerous fastening means could be utilized I prefer to use some means which are reliable in holding the seat in its vertical position without requiring undue work or strain on the part of the user. Accordingly, at the distal end of the seat 26 I provide a small magnet 43 which is adapted to be attracted by a similar magnet 44 attached to the upper portion of the recess frame 22. 'In this manner, when the seat is manually moved towards its vertical position `the magnets will form an attraction for each other and insure the completion of the swinging of the seat about its hinge to its vertical position, and will positively retain the seat in such position until a deliberate force is used to separate the two magnets from each other. This force is not an extremely great one and even persons with impaired physical qualifications will have little difficulty in performing this operation.

In Figure 4 there is disclosed a slightlymodified form of construction which may be utilized for existing bathtubs wherein it would not only be difficult to provide the notches 36 and 37 but it would likewise be difficult to provide the recess 21 in the wall 7. Thus, instead of providing the recessed frame 22 I mount the seat 26a on the outer surface of the wall 7 and instead of attaching the hinge members 28a to a horizontally disposed frame member I secure the same to a verticalvstud 46, conventional lath 47 and plaster. 48 beingshown on the outer surface of the stud. In this manner the seat 26a is somewhat exposed at all times but as the distance between the outer surface ofthe wall 7 and the bottom surface 32a of the vseat is less than the width of the rim V12, the seat will still. not Vinterfere with the normal use Yof the bathtub. The same magnetic means V43 and 44 may be used for maintaining the seat in its inoperative position Yand when moved downwardly to its operative position, the, seat will merely have the bumpers 41a `disposed on the upper rim surface 12, the hinge providing the other support for the opposing rim surface. From the foregoing description yitwill be appreciated Vthat while the seat of the present invention is extremely simple in construction and operation it fulfills a definite need in providing a seat which may be moved without difficulty into and out of position on a bathtub so as to provide improved safety and comfort for the occupant.

VWhat is claimed is:

1. In combination with a bathtub having a longitu` dinally extending side disposed adjacent a wall, means defining a vertically extending recess in said wall, the lower portion of said recess being substantially coterminous with the upper surface of said side, a longitudinally extending seat member normally disposed substantially entirely within said recess, means pivotally attaching the lower end of said seat member to structural portions of the wall adjacent the lower portion of said recess, the other end of said seat member overlying and being supported on-the opposite upper surface of said bathtub when said seat member is moved about its pivot to a horizontally disposed position traversing the width of said bathtub, and means for releasably securing said seat in its vertical inoperative position.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which said securing means includes a magnet disposed adjacent the distal end portion of said seat member.

3. A seat adapted for use with a bathtub having longitudinally extending rim portions comprising: a generally rectangular member-of a length sufficient to traverse and overlie said spaced rim portions, means pivotally mounting said seat about a horizontal axis adjacent one of said rim portions for movement from an inoperative vertical position to an operative horizontal position wherein the distal end of said member is supported on the other of said rims, and means for releasably securing said distal end in said inoperative position.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 in whichsaid seat in its inoperative position is disposed substantially immediately adjacent and parallel to a wall generally coplanar with a longitudinally extending wall of `said bathtub, and said pivotally mounting means being operatively connected to said wall and to the under surface of said seat for permitting movement of the latter from said vertical to said horizontal position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,597,922 Osborn Aug. 31, 1926 2,588,562 Parish Mar. l1, 1952 2,670,029 Rossi Feb. 23, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS France May 6, 1921 

